BOOK REVIEWS

Meet Me Where I Am is a wonderful guide, particularly for those who interact with someone who has Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia. With incredible sensitivity and warmth, Ms. Drummond draws from her experiences with patients and families through her almost-30 years as a registered nurse. Through opportunities to “walk in the shoes” of one who is suffering from cognitive diminishment, Drummond shares valuable understanding about the diseases and specific tips as to how a family member or caregiver may respectfully, compassionately and effectively interact with a loved one, patient or client. Cautioning that the disease offers no guarantees as to responses from one day to the next, Drummond focuses on helping the reader understand the world in which the loved one lives and the role of caregiver attitudes, emotions, words and actions. More >>>

A Bittersweet Season is a very personal story of the author’s caregiving journey with her aging mother along with her frank and hard-learned advice on what to do – and what not to do – when caring for an aging parent. Many of the lessons are difficult to hear – her appraisal of the assistive living model, Medicaid spend-down plans, and our broken Medicare health care system – should be a wake-up call for us all. Her description of Thanksgiving dinner with her mother in an nursing home will resonate with many adult children. Ultimately, if you read this book before you need it, you will feel better prepared and if you read this book while you are in the midst of caregiving, it will reassure you that you are not alone in your caregiving role. More>>>

A staggering 42 million Americans face the challenges of caring for a loved one while working. Although caregiving can be a richly rewarding experience, the role comes with enormous responsibilities—and pressures. AARP’s gentle guide provides practical resources and tips that are easy to find when you need them, whether you’re caregiving day to day, planning for future needs or in the middle of a crisis. And equally important, this book helps you care for the caregiver—you. Author Amy Goyer, an expert in aging and families, provides insight, inspiration and her own poignant story as a live-in caregiver to her parents.

Elder Rage is the story of a highly accomplished daughter’s tenacious love for her father as he spirals downward into Alzheimer’s disease and her equally strong love for her mother who tries as hard as she can to hang onto the husband she once knew. More>>>

Through rich real-life stories of challenges and successful strategies, Facing the Finish shows us how to plan for aging, helping us take control of our future rather than being at its mercy, whether in relation to our parents or ourselves. More >>>